I recently enjoyed watching HUMAN by The Movie by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, and was struck by the diverse locations as well as the diverse yet strange unified lighting theme.

Using a dark (black) background Bertrand has literally focused all our attention onto the face of the moment. With mostly natural, frontal (sometimes toppish) lighting, which is virtually shadowless, every pore, freckle, line and emotion is bared front and center for us to soak in.